CAREER FEATURE
Landscape photographer DAVID SHAW shares ten ways to balance a love of shooting with family life
Are you a serious shooter trying to balance photography and family life? Photographer David Shaw has 10 pieces of advice for you
In our modern fast-paced world, where emails ping on our smartphones and Instagram helps us to see what shots we’re missing out on at every second of the day, it can sometimes feel like we’re working all the time – or need to be. A dramatic outlook, yes, but there’s no doubt that the pressure on professional photographers has certainly increased with technology in recent years. Along with this comes the nagging idea that we need to be shooting more to stay competitive, gain clients and customers and build a reputation, portfolio or business.
Most professional photographers are also self-employed, which means that the ‘office’ is at home, and the boundaries of work hours are easily blurred. Here at DP, we spend so much time dishing out advice and tips for the pro photographer – how you can upskill and sell yourself – but we rarely acknowledge that our nearest and dearest also have a part to play in our success, and that our photography can impact family life, too.
Over the next few pages, shooter David Shaw (WWW.ALL-PHOTO.CO.UK) will be sharing his advice for balancing a job, photography and family life. Even if your family unit is small, or you’re generally in an independent situation, there’s still wisdom to be found in his advice.
“If you follow the advice of many professional photographers, one of their fundamental tenets is that to produce good images you need time,” David says. “There’s no doubt some truth in that; often the main difference between a professional and amateur photo is that the professional was able to visit the same location ten times. However, when you’re balancing a full-time career and a young family, time is a luxury many creatives can’t afford.
“In my wisdom, I decided to take up photography at the same time I started a family. As my hobby became more of an obsession, I’ve had to learn the hard way how to try and juggle family life, work and find enough time to satisfy my photography.
“It’s not easy, but with some creativity you can have your cake and eat it and build a portfolio that you’re proud of. Over the next few pages, I’ll be sharing a few things I’ve learned over the last five years (at the time of writing I am still happily married, gainfully employed, and my kids don’t think I’m a total clown. The verdict is out on the quality of my portfolio however!).”
1 INCLUDE THE FAMILY
A big part of planning a photography session can be the scouting – learning an area so that you can revisit when the conditions are right. This provides the perfect opportunity to involve the family! Bring the kids, bring your partner; just be honest about it as it can be quite transparent if you try and hide your motivations. You’ll also be amazed where you can take a pushchair once you give it a go. A great tip can be to challenge older children to help you find interesting features to photograph. You’ll find that kids’ eyes and imaginations are usually better than your own.
2 AVOID FOMO
(FEAR OF MISSING OUT)
If you’re on social media, it can be quite demoralising to see fellow pros sharing a shot of a misty morning when you’ve been unable to get out, or a bluebell wood in full bloom when you could only visit when the light was wrong. Try to enjoy the pictures for what they are and avoid comparing your circumstances with others. Once you get FOMO, you’re heading for arguments. Similarly, if you choose not to go out and something out of the ordinary develops such as an epic sunset or storm, try not to tell your partner about it repeatedly.
3 GET TO KNOW YOUR LOCAL AREA
If you’re reading this in the UK, you’ll likely be reasonably close to an area of countryside (having a vehicle helps, obviously). Cutting your travel time down obviously gives you more opportunity to take photos, and some of the most rewarding images I have in my portfolio were taken within five minutes of my home. Wherever in the world you’re based, define a reasonable radius of travel from your home and pick out favourite locations within that. Areas that change throughout the seasons or contain different habitats will give you more variety within your images with, again, less travel and time investment.
4 GET UP EARLY, GO OUT LATE
AS A NEW PARENT YOU’LL PROBABLY FIND THAT EARLY MORNINGS OR LATE NIGHTS AREN’T A CHOICE. HOWEVER, ONCE THE KIDS START SLEEPING LONGER, MAKE
USE OF YOUR NEW-FOUND NOCTURNAL ABILITIES TO GO OUT EARLY AND TAKE SOME PHOTOS WHILE THE FAMILY ARE STILL IN BED. IN SPRING AND SUMMER YOU’LL GET FANTASTIC LIGHT AND STILL BE HOME IN TIME TO MAKE BREAKFAST. THAT EARLY ALARM CAN BE HARD BUT CATCHING SOME FANTASTIC MORNING LIGHT CAN BE QUITE EUPHORIC.
5 DON’T PUSH YOUR LUCK
Early on, it’s worth recognising that you won’t be able to go and shoot every time you want to. If the kids have been up all night, or are ill, be prepared to forfeit going out, even if the conditions are perfect. If staying at home is mandatory, think about other ways you can work on your photography, such as editing, organising gear or getting your website and social media in gear.